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The Gruesome Murder of Gabbi Doolin

Timothy Madden attacked the girl at a football game

By True Crime WriterPublished 3 years ago 3 min read
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Gabbi Doolin was kidnapped, raped, and strangled to death on November 14, 2015 while attending a football game at the Allen County High School football stadium in Scottsville, Kentucky. She was at the game to watch her brother, Alec, play.

Dressed in a cute pink dress, Gabbi played hide-and-seek with friends near the bleachers during the game. One of the kids Gabbi played with asked Amy, Gabbi’s mother, if she had seen the girl because she could not find her. That’s when Amy frantically searched for her daughter and alerted authorities.

Gabbi Found

Police found the 7-year-old girl’s body 25-minutes after she disappeared from the game. She was face down in a creek.

Police locked down the scene and asked everyone at the game that night if they saw the girl with anyone that night or noticed anything unusual. Tips quickly led them to the home of 40-year-old Timothy Madden.

Madden attended the game that night to watch his son play. The clothing and boots he wore were stained with blood and an officer who visited his home said it appeared that he had blood around his genital area. Many people mentioned his name to police when asked if they noticed anything unusual that evening.

DNA Matches Blood From Madden’s Clothing

November 20, 2015, DNA taken from Gabbi’s body came back, matching the blood taken from Madden’s clothing.

He was taken into custody where he initially denied any involvement with Gabbi’s murder. Transcripts of the initial police interview state that Madden told police “You guys are at the wrong place,” when they knocked on his door. He told reporters that he was innocent and that you could ask anyone who knew him.

Amy told investigators that Gabbi was on the cheerleading squad with Madden’s daughter and would have trusted him enough to go off with him. The families knew of one another.

Until the murder, Madden had a relatively clean criminal record with only a few misdemeanor non-violent criminal offenses a part of his history.

Emotions Run High During Sentencing

Emotions ran high during Madden’s 2019 sentencing. Facing the death penalty, Madden pleaded guilty to the murders.

“Why did you do it? There’s no reason you can give, Gabbi was an innocent little girl at her brother’s football game,” Amy said as she wept while giving her victim impact statement.

Timothy Madden turned his attention elsewhere as she spoke, prompting Gabbi’s father, Bryan, to spoke up to address Madden and his attorney saying,

"Sir, that's the most disrespectful thing I've ever seen...We've had four years waiting, you can let him listen to what she has to say. Do you understand me?"

Suddenly, Bryan became overwhelmed with emotion and appeared to lurch forward toward his daughter's killer while yelling,

“Three minutes! That’s all we’ve asked. You can listen to her for three minutes! I’m sick of this. He needs to hear what she has to say!”

The judge momentarily cleared the courtroom after chaos erupted between the Madden and Doolin families. After a brief recess, Amy finished her statement and a member of Madden’s family provided a statement on his behalf, stating that he was a loving person.

Judge Says he Would Have Sentenced Madden to Death

Upon agreement with the Doolin family, the death penalty was taken off the table and Madden was sentenced to life in prison. The judge said he likely would have sentenced Madden to death had the family not agreed to the plea deal sentencing him to life in prison.

Timothy Madden deserved the death penalty. I am glad the judge allowed the parents of Gabbi to give input, however, so justice (for what it is worth) is served for their peace of mind.

RIP sweet girl, Gabbi.

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About the Creator

True Crime Writer

The best of the worst true crime, history, strange and Unusual stories. Graphic material. Intended for a mature audience ONLY.

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